The Definition of Cruising

We saw a sign once that said the definition of sailing is working on your boat in exotic locations.  We lived that today in our cruising life.  We worked all day in a beautiful place.  The sun was out; the birds were zipping around us; the music was lilting.  We were working.

We started by trying to mount our new 2.5 horsepower Suzuki motor on the boat. (This was our Christmas gift: Romance lives.)  We wanted to mount it so that we can easily lift it and place it on the dinghy. It weighs just 30 pounds. We tried out different locations.  We didn't want to block the wells on the back porch that hold lines, hoses and electrical cords.  Could we put it upstairs? Then it would be out of the way.  Yikes!  Watching George back down the stairs, carrying the motor was terrifying. Could we put it upstairs and lower it with a line over the edge?  No! Finally, we put it on the back rail where it is close to the dinghy.  This was the logical, first place we considered.

George had to measure the boards and cut and drill holes for bolting the boards to the boat.  Measuring took lots of time.  Then the drill was not big enough, or the bolts were too large.  (More lessons:  Buy more hardware.  Buy different sizes. Buy extra washers. Check that your drill bit is the same size as your bolt.)  He asked around and borrowed a drill from the dockhands.  Yes, size matters.

Can you see how big that drill is?  I was terrified when he used it near me.  "Here, Martha, hold this piece of wood."

We got the drill mounted and filled with gasoline, just 1 quart.  (Had to borrow a gasoline can too.)
We added the 1 cup of oil.  All went well.  We pumped up the dinghy and carefully lifted the motor into it.  Yahoo!  It fit over the back board of the dinghy.  We took a trip across the water from our marina on the mainland to the beach.  We have made this 30 minute walk several times.  Today we puttered with our new motor and tied up below the bridge in just fifteen.  It was now 3:00 pm, and we were starving.  We ate fried shrimp baskets at a great spot on the beach.  The singer sounded like Jimmy Buffett and played oldies.

Here is the finished product:  a thing of beauty that works! You can see the dinghy too.

We ate quickly because we needed to buy groceries, and dark hits at 6:00 pm.  We walked out to a trolley stop, waited a while, and then decided to walk to Topp's Grocery instead of riding to Publix. 

We saw that it was only 0.6 miles away.  George stopped at a hardware store on the way, and I walked on to Topp's.  That was a long half mile!  But it is flat here.  I got lots of fresh food, and George joined me in a few minutes.  We loaded up our cloth bags and walked back to the dinghy.  We got our exercise, carrying four bags of groceries and walking 2+ miles.  Very glad to see the dinghy and motor still under the bridge.  (There were lots of dinghies parked there, but the fear of robbery is strong in me.)   Putter, putter back to the boat.  Unload groceries.  Pick up motor and secure it. Clean up.  Sweat.  Watch sundown.  Close up screens to keep no-see-ums out.  We drank large glasses of water before we had our margaritas.  

Tomorrow we are leaving Ft. Myers for the first leg of our trip to Key West.  Living on this boat with George is a great diet.  He keeps me stressed enough about weather and planning to have a regularly upset stomach.  So I'm at my ideal weight and hoping for sleep tonight and calm seas tomorrow.